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07 November 2011

Texas State Fair

Retrospective Post 1- Back to October 14

Back in October, my father took my sister, two of my sister's friends, and I to the Texas State Fair out at Fair Park in Dallas. The Texas State Fair typically lasts around 3 weeks in October, and is very popular, and crowded. The place is full of arcade games, some small rides, exhibits, a planetarium, an aquarium, other such buildings, and of course many, many food stands that include a slew of fried foods (we're Americans- moreover Texans...is that surprising?)

This was probably one of the most exciting days in October. The first thing we did was peruse a hall that had exhibits of exorbitantly high cost items, with a man who was a "one-man band"- he played 12 instruments all on his own, including using his feet, head, knees, and everything! It was quite amusing!

We went to the "Midway" next, the loudest part of the park, where all the games were located, as well as the rides. My dad, of course, talked me into going onto a ride which I was horrified of going onto. The ride pivots you around a fulcrum while at the same time spinning you front to back in circles, often times leaving you facing upside down. Freaky! He took pictures. *glare*

For a while we just walked the midway, looking at what they had to offer, including marvelling at all the fried foods that were possible, including fried pop-tarts, fried cheesecake, fried Oreos, fried Coke, and fried Snickers, among other things. There were so many food stands that someone with the pickiest taste could find at least one stand that would serve something they'd like...I did! I had a quesadilla for lunch, with a frozen margarita.

We next stopped at the huuuuuge ferris wheel, from which I got a great shot of the Dallas skyline. It was a short-ish ride, but nice to see such a large part of North Texas. The line wasn't as long as we expected it to be, so it went quick.

Our next stop was the aquarium, where there were some awesome- and some strange- sights to see. They also had stingrays you could pet (I did not take that chance!) and displays of fish from around the world. There were also lizards, a crocodile turtle (I have NO idea how that was conceived....), and other interesting aquatic creatures. Wasn't my choice, but my sister was there with her friends, so we met her there.

Once they left, we looked around some, then they called us down to the pond where they had some swans.....the boat kind! First time I had seen them that I remember. This is where I had my food, and they had some food too, although we ate at different places- we ate closer to the Cotton Bowl. The Cotton Bowl is the place where the "Red River Rivalry" takes place- Oklahoma plays Texas (Texas won!)

After that, we proposed going to the planetarium for a show, but the shows were sold out, so we wandered the park for a while longer, just taking in sights and taking random rides. We sat down for a while and talked some, and we spent some time in the gift shops, looking around.

The last thing we did, to get rid of the last of our "tickets" was go on a anti-gravity ride, which was a complete blast (I've always loved the ride! I've been on it in other fairs). We finally went to a taffy stand and bought some taffy to end out the day, and stopped at another gift shop on the way out.

After that, we caught the Texas Rangers game on the ride home. They were in the middle of the 11th inning, and tied, vying for a place in the World Series at the time. It was an amazing ending to the game, with a grand slam (a home run hit when the bases are loaded, for the non-baseball fans) putting the Rangers winning 7-3...amazing! We got home and I was so tired, I went to bed pretty quickly. It was a pretty much awesome day. Absolutely loved it. My first time to the State Fair, and I'd love to go again (but it's very expensive). Still fun though!